OPENING OF PARLIAMENT.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 2895, 10 May 1888, Page 3

OPENING OF PARLIAMENT.

The Governor's Speech.

W (By Special Telegraph,) Wellington, Thursday. The second session of the tenth Parliament of New Zealand was this day opened by the Governor, when his Excellency was pleased to make the following speech Hon. Gentlemen of the Legislative Council, and Gentlemen of the House of Representatives,— .It affords me much pleasure to ftjain meet you in Parliament assembled. Although I am not able to congratulate you on any decided change in the condition of the great industries of New Zealand or of the trade of the country, it is satisfactory to know that signs of improvement are not wanting, while some classes of produce are unfortunately low in price, the increase which has taken placjgi the value of wool must beneficimyaffect the people. There are also encouraging indications of a revival in the mining industry throughout the Colony. Considerable sums of money have been lately invested in tho acquisition and development of mining properties, which can only be rendered profitable by a large expenditure of capital. It is believed that through the introduction of machinery, suited to the treatment of the refractory ores found on our gold-fields, large tracts of country now lying useless will bo profitably worked, through the use appliances, large portions of tlie sea beaches of New Zealand will be rendered available for working, and thus an almost limitless source of wealth will be opened up during the recess. My advisers earnestly endeavoured to give effect to the will of the country by reducing the public expenditure; The tusk imposed upon them involjgmucli anxious consideration. They nave sought to make erery reduction compatible with maintaining the efficiency of the public service. The question of the classification of the civil service of the colony is intimately connected with that of retrenchment. My Government believed that it was necessary, in order to put the service permanently upon a proper foooting, that the subject should be dealt with comprehensively, notwithstanding the difficulties which have grown up through the absence in the past of any uniform plan in its different branches. A Bill has been prepared dealing with the Civil Service in a manner which it is believed will mjet with your approval. It is hoped tlWthe classification which it is proposed to effect under it, while rendering economy more easy of attainment, will act beneficially upon the service tself. My Ministers wish to place upon record their appreciation of the manner in which the Civil Servants as a body have aided in carrying out changes ueoegpy to effect economy; they liaveWeadily furnished information and advice, and have displayed a willingness to fall in with an altered system, although it in many instances entailed reduced remuneration and increased duties. The task imposed upon the Government has thus been much facilitated, You will be gratified to learn that the building of the war vessels to be supplied under the provisions of "The Australasian Naval Defence Act, 1887" is being carried on by the Imperial Government with all possible expedition. The time is, therefore, not far distant when we may expect to see Australasian waters a naval force, which, acting in concort with our land defences, will insure the safety in times of war of this part of this part of the Empire, and protect its trade, Tjujiarbor defence works which |form a necessary part of any scheme for the protection of tho Colony against endanger have been so far completed!!? to render it unnecessary to maintain the past heavy expenditure, i My Ministers have therefore been able to effect large reductions in the •, annual cost . of the Defence Department. ...They believe that notwithstanding''such reductions tho Colony is now fairly well prepared for any emergency which may arise. The i thanks of the country are due to Major-General Schaw for the very i valuable assistance and advice which ' have been given by him in connection with the completion of these works and the re-organisation of the forces of the Colony. His experience, the benefit of which was freely given to my Government, has proved of great advantage. The anticipations of my advisers as to the beneficial effects of the Land Act of last session, have so far been verified by events, and relief has been afforded to many hard-work-ing through the operation of . its clauses, considering the time which has elapsed since this Act came into ; force. The number of desirable i filers who have been placed upon i waste lands by means of its oper- j ations is very satisfactory, and full information will be afforded you with 1 regard to the other matters connected \Yitli the settlement of Crown Lands,

My Ministers are pleased to be able to state' that the economies rendered necessary by the reduced vote for-Edu-cation have been carried out without impairing the system, They regard its maintenance in a vigorous condition as essential to tho public wellbeing. Papers 011 this subject will bo laid before you. I have much pleasure in informing you that the attitude of the Maori race Is marked by much good feeling towards the Government. It must bo a matter of congratulation to both races that Tawhaio should at last have seen that it was to tho interests of himself and his people that the two races should bo united under one Government. The action taken by them may be regarded as the filial abandonment on the part of the natives of their wish to establish a separate authority for their own Government. My Ministers believe that the time has arrived when the whole question of dealing with Native lands should bo treated upon a basis in accord with the advancing knowledge of the Native race, Bills will be submitted for your approval which have been prepared with due regard to this consideration. Hon, Gentlemen of tho House of Representatives,—The estimates of the revenue and expenditure for the current year will be brought before you at an early date, when I have no doubt they will receive careful consideration.

Hon. Gentlemen of the Legislative Council and Gentlemen of the House of Representative?,— The Chinese question is becoming one of serious difficulty, and my advisers consider that until some common ground of agreement is arrived at between the Imperial Government and the Government of the Chinese Empire, this colony must join with tho other Australian Colonies in enacting measures of a restrictive character. A bill dealing with the subject will be laid before you.

The rabbit pest which has long been a matter of the gravest importance to this colony has received careful attention. Althoughjthe means which have been in use have, I am happy to state, proved sufficient to keep it in check, although they are not calculated to completely remove this pest. My advisers have therefore taken steps to have the question of a thorough remedy considered by competent gentlemen in the Colony, and they have joined with the other colonies in causing the subject to be investigated in Australia, In furtherance of this object, they deputed a New Zealand settler of experience, and high scientific attainments, to attend the experiments, which were arranged to be made by the representatives of M. Pasteur and others. The results of these experiments, and the report of tho New Zealand representative will be placed before you as soon as possible.

Time has not permitted the carrying out of the reforms contemplated by "The Government Railways Act, 1887," Applications have been invited from those desirous of filling the office of Chief Commissioner, but a selection has not yet been made. Until this has been done, it is impossible to have the Act put in force. In accordance with the unde'taking given by my Ministers during the last session of Parliament, alterations in the tariff will be submitted for your consideration. By a re-adjustment of duties it is hoped to remove certain anomalies which periodically appear in the tariff. One of the objects of this re-adjustment will be to afford furthor financial aid in carrying on departments of Government, while due regard will also bepaid to the effects which the alterations will have upon the trade and manufactures of the colony. The question of creating a means of adjusting from time to time the rents payable by deferred payment settlers and by tenants of the Crown, and of municipal and other bodies has received careful attention, A Bill dealing with this subject will be laid before you. The Midland Railway contract after much deliberation, has been prepared upon the lines decided by Parliament, and now awaits confirmation by the [company in England. The attention of my Go vermnent has been directed to questions relating to the establishment and preservation of fisheries upon which subject a consolidating and amending Bill dealing with many important points has been prepared*. Bills for the amendment and consolidation of the electoral laws, for the maintenance of discipline in the naval and military force, for remedying any defects in the Municipal Rating and Land Transfer Acts, and Yor the repeal of the Crown and Native Lands Rating Act, will be submitted to you. These and tho other important measures to be laid before Parliament, I commend to your careful consideration. I earnestly hope that with the blessing of God, you may be enabled to discharge your ardous duties with advantage to the interests of the Colony.